Dinner for Three
by JamesTheGreater
Summary: "Wait, you said you would help me on a date with Carly.How can I get a date in the first place? She's turned me down every time."If Sam had a collar on her tank top she would have popped it. "Fredgunk, you just leave that to me." Creddie/Seddiefriendship


**IDOI**

**This is quite a long fic. Speaking of fics, there is one that should be somewhere around here. It was written by Axel100 who happens to be awesomely awesome. You should check it out. Also, there are a bunch of other fics that should (coincidentally) be somewhere near mine. I assure you that they are fantastic. Here are the authors: KingxLeon21, Pigwiz, and Tech-Man.**

* * *

The sun beat down on Seattle with an intense heat, effectively slowing the city to a crawling pace. Cars moved lethargically through the streets. Trees stood still, begging for a breeze. The air was heavier and drier than Mrs. Benson's Special Carrot Cake. The rolling blackouts had started that morning, but they weren't problematic as breakfast was cooked outside on the sidewalk. Now, the afternoon had arrived and the sun was Hot with a capital H. Whoever had been outside had long retreated into the relative safety of their houses. The iCarly gang, for example, was sprawled across the living room of apartment 8C.

"Ugh, it's too hot to move," Sam groaned from behind the couch. She was lying perfectly still in an attempt to waste as little movement as possible. Carly gave no sign of having heard her friend but Freddie replied from the arm chair, his eyes closed. Unlike Sam's voice which was somewhat slurred because of the heat, Freddie's voice was clear. He mother always said girl's liked guys who talked clearly. "_If you don't speak clearly and annunciate, you will find it hard to get a date."_

"But not too hot to say 'it's too hot to move'?"

"What?"

Freddie explained, "If it's too hot to move, then how can you move your lips and complain about it?"

Sam narrowed her eyes, even though he couldn't see her. "Fine. Let me rephrase. It's too hot to move, but I can still make the effort to get up and punch smart-ass nubs named Fredward."

The threatening sound of a fist smacking into a palm was heard.

Carly intervened from her bed on the coffee table.

"You guys, it's too hot to be arguing. And I'm trying to watch Elephant Love. I heard this is the one where she accepts the peanut."

Once again, the room was filled with silence, save for the occasional trumpet. The stuffy air was suffocating, pressing down on their ears, noses and mouths like a thick pillow.

With obvious struggle, Sam started complaining again in a muffled voice.

"Caaaaarrrlyyyyy...when's your Norwegian air conditioner...gonna get fixed? Hasn't it been like...a month?"

"Yeah, but the repair guys' are having trouble with it. They say it uses different parts a stuff than here."

"Stupid Norwegia."

Carly let out a large breath. "Look, we can't do anything about it now. Let's just deal with it. I'm gonna get some iced tea. You guys want some?"

Sam grunted while Freddie nodded his head.

Carly rolled ungracefully off the table and landed on the floor with a thud. She picked herself up and began the slow, arduous trek to the kitchen.

Freddie cracked open an eyelid to see Carly's light blue short-shorts swinging back and forth. He could swear they were taunting him.

"_Ha ha, Freddie, we like to spend time with you and we think you are a sweet and wonderful person. But we still won't date you. Neener, neener, you're a wiener!"_

"Hey, pervert, Carly doesn't have a mirror in her pocket so stop trying to see yourself in her pants."

Freddie could see the top of Sam's head from his vantage point on the armchair. Her head was tilted backwards and her upside-down face was glaring at him.

"I respect Carly more than that, "he retorted.

"Huh. Is that why there's drool at the corner of your mouth? Because you respect her?"

Freddie hastily wiped his face only to find that his hand was perfectly dry. It was his turn to glare.

"Very funny, Sam."

She smirked. "I couldn't resist. With you staring at her like that."

Freddie glanced over to see that Carly was slowly pulling open the refrigerator door. She was still unaware of the conversation.

Just like she was unaware of his possible status of boyfriend.

Freddie sighed dejectedly. "I can't help it. It's just so frustrating. What does she want from me? What does every guy she's every dated have that I don't have?"

Sam opened her mouth.

"Don't answer that."

Sam rolled onto her stomach and propped herself up with her elbows to get a better look. Freddie was gazing at the ceiling as if all his answers would be etched into the rafters. His forehead was minutely creased, hinting at the hopelessness he was feeling within. He didn't look like the Freddie she knew.

For the first time she could remember, Sam sort of felt sorry for him.

That came out wrong.

She didn't feel sorry for him. She pitied him. Much like the gods pitied the lesser mortals. Yeah. That's it.

"Hey, Fredgar," Sam began in an unexpectedly mild tone, "What if I, let's say, became...an accessory to you achieving your goal?"

Freddie's confusion was obvious. "What?"

"I said what if I... led you through the steps leading to your ultimate happiness?"

"What are you saying?"

"Are you stu—I said what if I could help you on a date with Carly?"

Freddie's eyes went wide with disbelief. Sam offering him help was on the list of impossibilities. Right next to Sam passing a class due to nepotism.

"Y-You want to help," he pointed a finger at himself, "...me?"

"Shhh!" Sam glanced around hurriedly. "You don't need to tell everyone in Seattle."

"But why? You don't exactly have the best track record in treating me um...nicely," Freddie pointed out suspiciously.

Sam knew Freddie would ask, though she still cursed his cautiously skeptic personality. She debated with herself before realizing that she wouldn't be able to keep it from him any longer. Sam sighed and crawled a couple feet closer to him. She motioned for him to lean forward.

"Look," she whispered in her most serious face, "I-I happen to care who Carly goes out with. She's my best friend. And lately, the guys have been...sub-par."

Freddie nodded, completely agreeing with her.

Sam continued. "I'm only going to say this once. Probably the only time in your entire life are you going to hear this from me," she took a deep breath and said with a pained expression, "Y-You're a decent guy, Freddie. And I think you'd be good for Carly. Only she doesn't see that because she can't see past the "best friend" Freddie. If she could see the "boyfriend" Freddie, I-I'm sure she would like it very much."

Sam collapsed from the effort. "There," she exhaled breathily.

Freddie was stunned at the fact that Sam actually paid him a compliment. There was no sarcasm or mockery. In a sane state of mind, she admitted that he was a decent guy. That might have been a far cry from hot stud, but he was grateful nonetheless.

"Thanks, Sam—," a sudden thought occurred to Freddie, reducing him to his former despondent condition, "wait, you said you would help me on a date with Carly. How can I get a date in the first place? She's turned me down every time."

If Sam had a collar on her tank top she would have popped it.

"Fredgunk, you just leave that to me."

Carly returned and handed them both a glass.

"Here. They're a little warm though because the fridge isn't working. Anyways, what were you guys talking about right now?"

A well-practiced liar, Sam replied smoothly, "Nothing. Why would I want to talk to _him_?"

* * *

Around 8 in the evening, the sky had started to darken. Mercifully, the sun decided to save its rage for another day. The air was cool and a slight breeze played through the now open windows. Freddie had already gone home for his weekly puzzle time with his mother. Carly was in the bathroom due to the approximately 2 gallons of iced tea that were running through her system. Sam was stretched out on the armchair where Freddie had been earlier. She watched as the female elephant accepted the peanut. Finally. Sam thought the drama had been approaching that of a soap opera cast with overly hormonal high schoolers.

A flush echoed through the empty apartment (save for her), making Sam wonder where Spencer had been for the last 12 hours. Then she convinced herself that some bacon was best left uncooked.

Carly flopped down, grinning with relief.

"I felt like I was going to explode! So, what'd I miss?"

"She accepted the peanut. Now they might be going steady, I'm not sure. It depends on how much of a commitment she wants. Obviously, he wants to stay with her after all he's done to get her to accept his peanut."

"Huh, poor elephant," Carly said sadly, shaking her head, "he's worked so hard. The least she could do is give him the time of day."

Sam replied, "Yeah. She should."

The two girls relaxed for a couple more moments. Sam decided it was best to do it when Carly was happy and content. Looking over at her best friend, she could see that Carly's eyes were half closed. Her lips were in a soft smile and her breathing was gradually growing slower.

Now was the time to strike.

"Hey, Carls?"

"Mhm?" Came the sleepy reply.

"I was wondering if you could help me with something."

"What is it?" Carly was suddenly alert and wary. She remembered the last time Sam had asked her for help. She was working harder on forgetting every day.

"Well," Sam started carefully, "you see...I owe Freddie some money. And by 'some' I mean a substantial amount of money. So we came to an agreement that I would help him get a date. We've been working on it for some time. And by 'some' I mean—"

"Yeah, yeah, a substantial amount of time."

"Yeah, but I need a test subject. And there is no way in hell or any other place that I would be that test subject. So I need you...to go on a date with Freddie. Just so he can practice his skills. What'dya say?"

Carly closed her eyes and contemplated.

"Just to practice?"

"Just to practice. Heavens knows he needs it."

They had a staring contest.

"...fine."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. Though you have got to stop borrowing money from people. I can't keep bailing you out."

Sam grabbed Carly's arm and shook her. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you—"

Carly giggled and shrugged her off. "Okay, what do you need me to do?"

Sam grinned. "It needs to be realistic. So just show up like you would on a real date and let the dork work his magic."

"That seems awfully simple. Why couldn't you just do it? You would know it's fake anyways."

Sam _tsked_ and shook her head. "No, no, it has to be someone who doesn't know what he's going to do. It has to be you."

* * *

_Knock. Knock. BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!_

Freddie rushed to the door, fearful of having an irate Sam on his hands. The regular already gave him migraines.

He let her in.

"What are you doing? Why aren't you dressed?"

Freddie swallowed nervously. "Look, Sam, I don't know if I can't go through with this."

Sam shoved him towards his room.

"No backing out now, wimp. If you don't do this now, you won't be able to do it ever."

He grabbed onto the door frame and partially turned his head around. "I've been waiting for years. I can wait for...well, you know, for forever."

She gave him a rough push so that he fell on his bed. She started paced back and forth in front of him.

"That's the sort of thinking that got you this far," Sam said angrily. "You need to push all those thoughts of failing behind you. They'll only drag you down and make you their bitch. Carly might've never given you serious thought before, but tonight she will. There's no other option. Tonight you **will** show Carly what she's been missing. Tonight you **will **show her what she means to you. Tonight she **will** realize that you are the one for her. And finally, tonight you **will **get a Carly kiss."

Freddie had been nodding along, amused at the irony of Sam lecturing someone else for change. Then he heard her last sentence. His face whitened.

"K-kiss?"

* * *

Feeling came first.

He was being slapped around.

Then hearing came.

"Fredwich. Hey. Wake up. C'MON! WAKE UP!"

Finally sight returned.

He was slouched in his desk chair. Sam stood in front of him, hands on her hips. Her blue eyes showed something he was unsure of. Annoyance, frustration, it could even be concern.

"And Sleeping Beauty awakens!" She exclaimed mockingly, waving her arms around in the air.

Nope. It was definitely annoyance.

"Ugh." He shook his head to clear away the swarm of bees that currently inhabited his mind. "What happened?"

"You fainted is what happened. You said kiss and then you dropped like a potato sack full of bricks. I've been slapping you for a minute. Quite fun actually. Remind me to come along when you see scary movies."

"Shut it, Sam." Freddie ran his hands through his hair. "I have to kiss her?"

"I thought that was the goal..."

"Well, yeah, eventually, but not on the first date!"

"You can't legalize a contract without a signature, Freddie. The kiss will seal the deal."

"But what will I do? What if I mess up? I don't know how to kiss! I've only had one kiss and that was you!"

Sam's right hand flashed out and suddenly she was holding his desk lamp, advancing on him menacingly.

Her threat squeezed through gritted teeth. "If you want to still be able to count past ten, you better shut the hell up. How many times do I have to tell you to never say that out loud? Ever!"

"Yes ma'am," Freddie squeaked.

Sam slammed the lamp down.

"Good. Now, about the kiss, you are going through with it. You will be fine. Done. End of discussion."

"But—"

"Uh uh."

"What if—"

"Nope."

"I don't—"

"Zip it."

"I've only—"

"Ever!"

Freddie wilted with resignation. He guessed he'd just have to go through with it; not that he would mind of course. He just didn't like the risk of messing up his chance at the future. He looked up to see Sam digging through a ludicrously large bag. Freddie wondered how he could have missed her lugging it in. Oh yeah. He had been freaking out.

She tossed a plastic bag at his face. Luckily, it was filled with some sort of cloth; otherwise the condition of his face would have been highly ineffective towards wooing Carly.

"Put those on. They're nice clothes. Better than your dorky duds."

"But I thought the point was to be myself? To make her realize she likes me for me."

"Yeah, but Carly is still a girl," Sam stated, "and girls like guys who put in effort. If you show up like you usually do, she'll think it isn't important to you."

Freddie realized his mistake and shut himself in the bathroom to dress. Meanwhile, Sam took out a battered HP Toughbook covered with stickers of various bands. She opened it and a couple of clicks later Sam was looking at the bottom floor of Carly's apartment. She never _had_ gotten around to removing the hidden camera. One quick check told her that the table was set up like it was with Valerie and Spencer was humming and bustling around in the kitchen preparing the grilled chicken. Sam had played it safe with the food. The usual spaghetti would have had too many risks and it was hard to talk while eating steak.

Freddie finished smoothing his hair down and exited the bathroom. This time, instead of a plastic bag, it was a small hard case the size of a wallet that came hurtling at his head. He opened it up to see an earpiece. It was the size of a nickel, though thicker.

"Put it in," Sam ordered as she sat in his chair and fiddled around with a headset

Used to following her commands, Freddie inserted the little micro-speaker into his ear. He was almost afraid to find out where she had gotten the technology. It was extremely advanced and probably extremely expensive.

"So, uh, where'd you get this thing?"

Her silence made him _completely_ afraid. He waited patiently as she put on the headset.

"Testing. Testing. 1, 2, 3. Freddie Benson is a nub."

Freddie simultaneously heard her in his room and in his ear. Sam spun around, smirking.

"This way," she explained, "I can tell you what to do."

As frightened as he was about a miniature Sam inside his head, Freddie still had to hand it to her. This was a smart idea. Freddie only wished he had come up with it. Obviously, he kept this thought to himself. Sam already had too much fun belittling him. No reason to give her more ammunition.

* * *

"Welcome, Freddie! Please, do come in."

Freddie stepped through the doorway and watched as Spencer closed the door. He locked it and slid the dead bolt into place with an ominous thunk. He slowly turned around. Freddie had never seen Spencer smiling like that. It wasn't a happy smile. It was more of an intimidatingly calm grin.

Spencer walked over to the couch, sat down, and patted the space next to him.

"Come here, Freddie. I want to talk to you about something."

Freddie nervously approached. Once he was seated, Spencer put an arm around him that was probably meant to be comforting, but was doing quite the opposite.

"Well, Fredward," Spencer began cheerfully, "we've known each other for quite some time, haven't we? I knew you when you were a wee thing. A mere fourth grader. Now you're all grown up. And it just so happens that you grew into a teenage boy. You know, I used to be a teenage boy once. I remember—"

"Spencer, what are you—"

"Sam told me about what you're doing. I helped because I think you're a great person and I trust you more than all the other guys in the world combined. But I'll be in my bedroom tonight. If you do anything to Carly that would make me lose my trust in you, I will walk out, grab you by the collar and take you into the hallway where there will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth. Do you understand?"

Freddie nodded fearfully. "Yes, sir."

"Great. Carly will be down soon. Have a nice night."

With that, Spencer heaved himself off the couch and strode into his room, shutting the door behind him.

"_Well that was sorta scary."_

Freddie jumped at hearing someone in his head. He then remembered Sam was on the other end.

"Tell me about it. I'd never seen Spencer like that before."

"_Yeah. Wait. Hurry, before Carly comes down! Go to the TV. To the right of it should be a big speaker on a stand."_

He followed her instructions, confused as to what she wanted.

"_Now run your hand underneath the speaker. There should be something that feels like a kumquat shaped sponge."_

He did and indeed there was a soft small object. It was taped to the underside of the speaker.

"_Now peel the tape off and take it out."_

It was a microphone. Probably used in conjunction with the camera.

"_Now slip it into your shirt pocket. That way, you can talk to me without having to talk to the whole room."_

As Freddie wondered why she didn't put this effort towards school, footsteps came down the stairs. He spun around in time to see Carly appear in a deep, blue dress that fell to her knees. He was a guy so he wasn't noticing the dress itself.

"_Be loose. Be confident. But not too confident. There's a fine line between being sure of yourself and being a jackass."_

"Wow, Carly, you look more beautiful than you usually are everyday."

She looked down at herself.

"Really? I don't think it's _that_ great."

"I think if you wore it any better, you'd outshine both the sun and the moon."

Carly blushed.

"_Easy, Freddienova, tone down the compliments. Carly appreciates them but she doesn't like being put on a pedestal."_

Flustered, she walked to the table and was about to pull out her chair when Freddie did it for her. She was surprised. He knew she could've easily done it faster but he still rushed over to help her.

Freddie took his place opposite. The meal had already been placed on the table.

"After you, Carly," he said gesturing to the chicken. Carly daintily picked up her knife and fork and started eating.

"Would you like something to drink?"

"Um, what is there?"

"There's water, juice, sparkling cider..."

"Sparkling cider please."

Freddie grabbed the bottle from where it was stashed beneath the table and filled Carly's glass. Returning the bottle to where it was, Freddie grabbed the knife in his left hand and the fork in his right.

"_Now, begin eating. Only cut small pieces. You need to be able to talk. Wait 30 seconds. If she doesn't start a conversation, you have to."_

Once again, he did as he was told. Luckily, Carly offered a subject for discussion.

"So," she said between bites, "what have you been up to lately?"

"Oh, you know, school, iCarly, mother and son things. The usual."

"You still do mother and son things? I thought you stood up to her or something."

"I did," Freddie said embarrassedly, "but I couldn't just desert her. I mean, she's my mom. She only does stuff because she loves me."

"Aw, how sweet." Carly said smiling, "So what do you do together?"

"Well, every week we do one jigsaw, we go to a writing workshop, and of course there is the mandatory health class."

"Health class? Isn't that a bit awkward?"

"No, see it's mainly about how to dress wounds, what to do in emergencies, how to avoid mishaps, things like that."

"Ah, so do you have a giant suitcase sized first aid kit, too?" Carly asked teasingly.

"No way. Mines only briefcase sized."

Freddie wished Carly would laugh out loud more. It sounded nice. Especially when it was when it was he that told the joke.

"_Good. You have her laughing. But don't talk about yourself too much. Talk about her too."_

"Enough about me, what have you been doing? Besides being beautiful."

"_You don't know the definition of subtlety do you?"_

"Oh, stop it. Actually, I haven't done muchin the past few weeks. There's iCarly. Um...I've been reading a lot. Oh and Spencer's started giving me art lessons again."

"Art lessons?"

"Yeah," Carly pointed at the wall behind him, next to the door, "that's one of my paintings. Way better than my rabbit, huh?"

He turned to see mass of colorful lines on canvas. He wasn't sure what it was except that it wasn't that good. But he couldn't say that out loud.

"_This is tricky. You can't say it's good because Carly knows it isn't. But you can't insult it either."_

"Wow. That is one passionate painting."

"_Smooth."_

Carly snickered. "Shut up. I know it's horrible. But it's mine. I painted it, you know? There's something to be said about being able to appreciate hard work in creation."

"I feel the same way. No matter how bad my programs are, I always sit back and tell myself 'I made that'. First it was nothing and now it's something."

"I know, sometimes people just want things to be perfect. They ignore the fact that the computer they were shouting at or the stoplight that took too long were built by people. People who probably took a long time designing that thing."

"Right, and they just don't understand that the effort put into making something out of bits of ideas floating in their minds is not a process to be decry. It's an outrage that they can't value the state of..well, existence. All they want is their instant gratification."

"Yeah, it's so stupid."

They both realized they were staring at each other. Carly quickly looked down at Freddie's plate. Grasping for something to say, she asked, "Why didn't you eat your carrots?"

"Hmm? I don't know. I never ate my carrots. You haven't noticed?"

"_Interesting. Play the question game. Even though you're both friends, it doesn't mean you know everything about each other."_

"No, I haven't really."

He saw that Carly's plate was cleaned off.

"Are you already done? That was fast. And here I was, wanting to make conversation."

"Freddie, being Sam's best friend, I had to pick up something didn't I?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Besides, I was really hungry. For some reason, Sam dragged me around the most mundane places in Seattle today."

"_There's a clear sky tonight. I figured you didn't want to stay inside for dinner too long. Take her to the roof. I have a camera up there too."_

"Sam is Sam. Hey, you want to go up to the roof? I heard there's supposed to be a clear sky tonight."

* * *

They ran the last few flights of stairs because the elevator didn't go all the way up. Carly burst through the roof access door, her arms up in victory.

"And Shay beats Benson by a mile! The crowd is going crazy!"

Freddie came through a couple seconds later, wheezing.

"You only won because I let you."

She laughed. "Sure. And it had nothing to do with the fact that you are completely out of shape."

"Nope."

"Ha. Next time I go the gym, you're coming with me."

Freddie was elated. It wasn't really second date; she was probably worried about his health. But still. It had to count for something right? In the middle of the Bushwell rooftop, there were a couple of reclined lawn chairs. He noticed there was only one blanket folded up on the ground. The wind blew harder, throwing Carly's hair across her face.

"_You're welcome, nub."_

They sat down and Carly covered them up with the blanket.

"You were right. The sky is so beautiful."

Freddie looked up. A dark shade of indigo arched over the city. It was dotted with various stars that twinkled randomly. He felt like he was floating and the sky was surrounding him on all sides, wrapping around just Carly and him, isolating them in the middle of the vast space.

He remembered Sam's suggestion.

"Wanna play the question game?"

"Alright. But what's the point. I've known you since like 4th grade. I know everything about you."

"You'd be surprised. You go first."

Carly thought for a moment.

"What's your favorite song?"

"Fly Me Away. Annie Little." Freddie tried to ignore the guffawing that was in his ear.

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Carly gave him a look. "Isn't it sorta...well...girly?"

"But it gets the jobs done. It might be girly, but it still means a lot to me. Getting away, escaping with someone you love. The song is relatively simple but it says bunches."

"Well, now you've got me convinced."

"Glad I did. So, what do you want to be when you get older?"

"An architect. The right combination of logical thinking and free expression."

"I can see you as an architect."

"Hopefully. Um...let's see...how many times have you gone to the doctor's?"

Freddie gave her a confused look. "What kind of question is that?"

"Just thought it'd be funny if you knew. Your mom seems like she would keep track."

"197," Freddie answered grudgingly.

Carly had the decency to turn away before grinning madly.

"What's your favorite website?"

"iCarly," she replied, giving him a glare for even considering she had another choice.

"Just wondering."

"What's yours?"

"iCarly."

"Good."

"Who's your favorite teacher?"

"Principal Franklin. I know he's not a teacher, but he taught me a lot about life."

Freddie nodded. "That man does not get paid enough."

"Definitely. How about...what state would you want to visit most?"

"That's a hard one. Um, most likely...California. The sun, the water, the people, the technology, everything there is great. In my opinion, one of the best states. Besides Washington. Home state pride and all that."

"Yep. You can't beat good ol' Washington."

"Yeah. What about...which actor or actress would you like to meet?"

"I'd like to meet Orlando Bloom for obvious reasons."

Freddie fought down a twinge of jealousy. If he was a girl he probably would have said the same thing.

"Speaking of people, who is your favorite person?"

"You."

The second he said it, he wanted to take it back.

"_Nice going, idiot. Let's just hope she wasn't scared away by your creepishness."_

Freddie chanced a look. Carly was staring at him, her eyes unreadable. They sat still and silent for an eternity. Suddenly, her arms shot forward and he flinched.

Carly hugged him.

She whispered in his ear. "That was pretty sweet of you, Freddie."

He relaxed and put his arms around her.

"I know you think I don't care about what you feel about me but I—"

Freddie wanted so desperately for her to go on. But her next words were utterly devastating.

"What is this?"

Oh shit.

She grabbed the earpiece and removed it from his ear.

"I-Is this an earpiece?"

Freddie nodded guiltily.

"And who is on the other end?"

"Sam."

"She said you were doing this training thing. I thought this was just the last test?"

If there was ever a time for honesty, this was it.

"No. I never went through any training. The date I was supposed to be preparing for was you. The other day, Sam offered to help me on a date with you. I agreed because I was desperate. Sam gave me that earpiece and a microphone so we could communicate."

"So everything tonight has just been a lie. You never learned anything. There was no training. It was just Sam telling you what to say and when to say it. Just because you were desperate to go on a date with me."

"No it isn't like that," Freddie protested, "I—"

Carly stared him down coldly. "Give me the microphone."

She extended her hand. Freddie sighed and slowly took the microphone out of his shirt pocket. He handed it over.

"Now go sit over there. Sam and I have to have a little chat."

* * *

Carly watched as Freddie trudged to the edge of the roof and sat with his legs dangling in the wind. She inserted the earpiece into her own ear and spoke into the mike.

"Sam?"

"_He he," _Sam chuckled nervously, _"What's up Carls?"_

"Explain."

"_I felt sorry for him, Carls. Alright? I know it doesn't sound believable, but I know what it's like to try again and again and never succeed. I know what it's like to want something so much that it hurts. So this time, I decide to give him a helping hand."_

"So you lied to me. You used me."

"_Well, yes, I lied. But it was for a good cause. Carly, what's so bad about Freddie? He cares about you a lot. He does everything for you. He knows what you like and don't like. He has good grades, cares about the environment, and is pretty smart. And I'd hate to say it but he's not that bad looking either. I don't know why you don't see it Carly, the guy's perfect for you. As for using you, I don't have any gain from this. Only you."_

"But he's like one of my best friends. What if it doesn't work out? What then? Are we going to spend every day having awkward silences? Then you might have to choose between us. I don't want to ruin what we have. A working trio."

"_Don't worry about me, Carly. I'll be fine. The point is that you are too afraid to go through with it and I don't know why. Freddie took a risk tonight. He laid it all on the table. I might have given him advice here and there but everything he said came from his own mouth. Not mine. With the way he cares about you, I'll be surprised if it doesn't work out. You know how he feels, Carls. Now find out how you feel."_

* * *

Freddie gazed down at the cars passing by. The drivers went along their merry way, each of them unaware of the teenage anguish above them.

He blew it. He knew he did. He should have just refused Sam's help and gone on the way he was. He survived this far.

Carly took a seat beside him. She kicked her legs back and forth.

"Freddie, I—"

"You hate me. I don't blame you. I'd hate myself too."

"No, I—"

"I guess it just became too much, you know? You kept going out with other guys and I was just the friend. I just want one date before I gave up for good."

"Freddie—"

"I'm sorry about all this. And it wasn't all Sam's fault. She was just trying to help me. Don't be mad at her. As for iCarly, I'll get you a new techie. Shane would do a great job. I heard he isn't afraid of you guys any more. I'll call him tonight and I'll—mmph."

Had she pushed him off the edge? Was he dead? Was he in heaven? Surely, he was because there was no way on Earth that she would be kissing him.

But wait, if he was dead, would her lips be that soft? Would she taste that sweet? Would her hands be running through his hair?

Carly pulled back and he could see again.

"Freddie, I would really like it if you and I could go to the movies tomorrow. Together."

He still felt light headed. "Together?"

"Yeah."

* * *

Freddie found his room in a horrible state. Sam's giant pack was probably filled with food because potato chip bags, Fat Cake wrappers, and soda cans were scattered all over his desk, bed, floor and, somehow, ceiling.

But he didn't care. Because he was going to the movies with Carly tomorrow. Together.

He never knew together was such a nice word. Freddie collapse on his bed, a stupid grin still etched on his face. He heard a crunch. Reaching under his back, he retrieved a note.

'_Sup, Fredwierd. You finally did it, eh? Finally. _

_I just wanted to say one thing. If anything happens to Carly, either because of you or someone else, I will kill you. If you hurt her in any way, I will kill you. If she comes crying to me because of something you said, I will kill you. If she sneezes and you don't say bless you, I will kill you. Get the picture? Anyways, have fun together._

_Sammy P._

_P.S. You should find a better place to stash your money. Consider your debt to me paid in full._

It was worth it.

* * *

**So I hope you didn't think you wasted your time. I sorta stepped out of my comfort zone for this.**

**Please review. And remember what I said in the first A/N.**

**P.S. I hope no one was offended by the thing about Norway. I'm sure if I met someone from Norway, it would be a pleasant experience.**


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